Barefoot is one step beyond

So you're gung-ho about this year's Sun Run and are thinking about a cool new pair of runners to go with that fresh attitude?Vancouver Sun Photographers
/ Vancouver Sun

The flat Vibram FiveFingers shoes encourages a more natural running stride with less of a heel strike, but people who have been using a supportive shoe don’t have the foot strength in their ligaments and fascia, says Vancouver physiotherapist Dan Wilson.

The New Balance 890 has an 8 mm offset toe to heel, common to the latest running shoe styles.Wayne Leidenfrost
/ Vancouver Sun

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So you're gung-ho about this year's Sun Run and are thinking about a cool new pair of runners to go with that fresh attitude?

How about those crazy-looking gloves for your feet that you may have spotted along a running path? Well, unless you're a veteran runner with the figure of an Ethiopian marathon champ, today's minimalist shoes shouldn't be your first choice, according to the experts.

The barefoot running trend that spawned shoes like the Vibram Five Fingers has already peaked after athletes started showing up at the physiotherapist's office with injuries to their feet, ankles and knees.

"It's an extreme step from a supportive shoe to a minimalist non-supported shoe," said physiotherapist Dan Wilson from the Allan McGavin Sports Medicine Centre's location at the Plaza of Nations in downtown Vancouver. "It (a minimalist shoe) encourages a more natural running stride with less of a heel strike, but people who have been using a supportive shoe don't have the foot strength in their ligaments and fascia."

A bestselling book called Born to Run launched the movement in 2009 when journalist and author Christopher McDougall told the story of the Tarahumara Indians living in Mexico's Copper Canyon region who are amazing high-endurance runners without the benefit of sports shoes. His discovery led him to ditch supportive running shoes and cured his foot ailments.

This spawned a raft of similar books - there's even an edition of Barefoot Running for Dummies - and new lines of stripped down, flatter running shoes by every major manufacture including Nike, Saucony, Adidas, New Balance and Brooks.

The main tenet of the movement is that shock-absorbing heels, cushy soles and arch support are all gimmicks created by the shoe makers aimed at getting you into a $175 pair of sneakers. Remember those flat Adidas trainers from the '70s? Now that's a running shoe, they say.

Furthermore, McDougall writes, humans naturally run with shorter steps landing on the mid-foot, not the longer stride and heavy heel strike encouraged by today's typical shoe.

But real-life experience has been different for most people said Scott Fraser, also a sports physiotherapist with the Allan McGavin centre, but at its War Memorial Gym location at the University of British Columbia.

"If you have been in a comortable, more supportive shoe, it's probably not prudent to switch to Five Fingers or a minimalist shoe," said Fraser adding that the injuries he's treated from such footwear include blisters, skin lesions, ankle and Achilles tendon strains.

"It's a veteran runner, used to running on the track in spikes, who's used to running on their forefoot," Fraser said. "For someone with a track background, they can work with it. But for the vast majority of people who are rear-foot or mid-foot strikers, they don't run well in that pattern."

That said, if someone wants to work toward barefoot running, they should start slowly and build up over time, the physiotherapists say. That could mean starting out by walking in a shoe with minimal support, graduating to short runs, but always switching back to a more forgiving pair of shoes until the skin, ligaments and muscles of your feet and ankles are strong enough.

"The people who are successful take a gradual approach," said Wilson.

Vanda Borean, owner of Rackets and Runners in Vancouver, agrees that the swinging pendulum of sports trends may have swung too far to the super-supported shoe, then over to the barely-there shoe and is now resting somewhere in the middle. The result: Shoes with lower heels made of airy materials.

"The big trend that's come from minimalist running is that shoes are a lot lighter."

The other change is the amount of heel elevation. Five years ago, there was typically a 12-millimetre difference between the height of a shoe's toe and heel, she explained. Barefoot-style shoes brought that down to between zero and 4 mm. Many of the latest styles have an 8 mm offset.

That's significant for people with tighter calves, often women who wear high heels at work, who won't be comfortable in a flat shoe.

So what to do? Go to a store that will do a gait analysis, talk about any previous running problems, look at your old shoes for wear patterns and find a shoe that fits you properly, said Borean.

"Don't pick a shoe by the colour, don't pay attention to the latest trends.

"Our goal is to get the facts from the customer and the role of the running shoe is to minimize the chance of injury."

You're looking at spending more than $100, but there's no need for most people to go into the $200 range, she added.

eellis@ vancouversun.com

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Barefoot is one step beyond

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